The Austrian conductor Richard Edlinger (1958-2005) was born in Bregenz and directed his first concerts at the age of seventeen. He completed his studies in conducting and composition at the Vienna Academy in 1982, by which time he had already acquired considerable professional experience. He was the youngest finalist in the 1983 Guido Cantelli Competition at La Scala, Milan. Since 1986 Richard Edlinger has been Artistic Director of the Capella Istropolitana, an orchestra with which he has undertaken regular tours in Europe.